


Scorched Earth

by AniM8dManga13



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Analysis, Bad Ending, Crimson Flower Route, Deconstruction, Gen, Mostly Ambiguous Ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 11:28:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29509017
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AniM8dManga13/pseuds/AniM8dManga13
Summary: At the end of Crimson Flower, Edelgard is shaken awake from her dream of a perfect Fodlan by her worst nightmare.ORHow Edelgard's dream REALLY ends (inspired by real-world history and politics).
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14





	Scorched Earth

Scorched Earth

How did she end up here? Back in the castle she grew up in, by the hollow, empty throne she had abdicated, wearing a dress she couldn't even look at anymore. And sitting in front of her, offering her tea, was an enemy she had sworn she had destroyed. "It's an honor to have you, Edelgard von Hresvelg." 

The year was 1190. Five years after the war, after Rhea had been slain, the church dismantled, and Fodlan united under the Adrestian banner once more, as it should have been. The Black Eagles were a strike force no more, dedicating their lives and positions to abolishing the crest system and the oligarchy built upon it. 

Edelgard had happily retired since. With Hubert and Ferdinand's aid, she had found a worthy successor to the new Fodlan and slipped away from the public eye, intent on living out the rest of her days in peace and quiet, far out in the remote countryside away from civilization. She had invited Hubert and Byleth, her dearly beloved teacher, to join her, but both had declined. The offer still stood should they change their minds, but neither showed up, even after three years. 

Imagine her surprise to have received a letter then, with the seal of Adrestia and a badge of the Black Eagles Strike Force attached inside. 

"Edelgard,

I hope this letter finds you well enough. I am returning these to you as I can no longer stomach being associated with this abject cruelty. I stood by you against Rhea, against the church, and your fellow classmates, my students, but I can support this no longer. I hope your dream coming true is worth this nightmare you've thrust us all into. I can no longer stay in Fodlan. 

Farewell,

Byleth Eisner" 

Nightmare? The Church of Seiros was no more, Shambala in shambles, and rulership was now under meritocracy. Could she have missed something? Surely Hubert would've informed her of anything gone awry. Perhaps the professor simply had a difference in opinion? 

Her thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a knock at her door. Perhaps Hubert's messenger was simply late in reporting whatever had vexed Byleth. However, the guest on the other side was not Hubert's messenger, nor anyone she had ever wished to see. 

"Ah, so you have locked yourself away, Flame Emperor." The man before her was pale, hair white like her own, and eyes lacking in hue. Her blood turned to ice. 

"I thought we had exterminated you lot," she growled. 

"You'd think so, wouldn't you?" her visitor sneered. 

"We'll make sure this time," she hissed back. The man's head fell back, and he let out a loud, gleefully mocking laugh. 

"With what army? You have no friends, no allies to call on. I know you're now on borrowed time, and there are more than enough in this land demanding for your head," he responded. That was news to Edelgard. 

"What have you done to them?!" 

"If they're lucky, von Aegir and his family have landed in Brigid. The rest followed your teacher out of the country, and, well, I can't say much for that dour right hand of yours." Before her eyes, he shifted, his appearance changing to match Hubert's exactly. 

"What have you done to him?!" There was no control in her voice this time, grabbing the man's collar and pulling it toward herself, fury blazing in her eyes. He morphed back, completely unfazed by the smaller woman's anger. 

"I'd tell you, but I'm here to pick you up and return you to the capital. I'll gladly inform you of everything you've missed." 

The ride to Enbarr was long, and made longer by how much anger Edelgard was holding on to. As they passed through towns and cities though, that rage only grew, shifting into horror as she saw ashes where homes once stood, bodies littering the streets, and blood soaking the cobblestone roads. 

"How...How did I hear nothing of this?" Her voice trembled, looking at her dream crushed and warped before her. 

"Your isolation? You never did bother to venture back into the world after retiring. You must've had so much faith in the future you wanted to build," her riding companion cooed, smirking at his little prisoner. 

"Sadly, Miss von Varley was whisked away before her lands were burnt to the ground. Hrym laid abandoned, and Bergliez posed very little threat. Not very strong for a minister of war after all, that man." 

"....How many?" Edelgard asked. 

"Hm?"

"How many are left?" 

"I told you. You have no friends and no allies left to defend you or your little dream. You're all alone." 

Silence was all she heard as they entered the castle once again. The staff refused to look at her, either with pity or rage on their faces. She recognized none of them. Led into the tea room, a hot cup of Hresvelg blend was placed in front of her, from the matching set her teacher had left behind. She refused to touch it. 

"I believe I didn't introduce myself to you! My name is Plato, acting prime minister of what will soon be New Agartha," her unwanted host said, taking a sip of his own tea. Edelgard's fists bunched up her dress under the tablecloth. 

"You who slither in the dark will be sent back where you belong," she cursed. Plato again laughed. 

"Where we belong? Quite a statement from the woman who killed and displaced so many of her fellow countrymen," he responded. 

"I did what had to be done, and I did so knowing the consequences!" Edelgard reminded quite firmly. "I left someone much more deserving in charge, to usher in a new age!" Plato chuckled again. 

"Ah yes, that young Gloria, was it? For shame. I'm sure Hubert did his best research on her, but there's little to look into for an orphan of Faergus and the Alliance. And not to mention what that poor girl went through after her family was declared a necessary sacrifice. I'm sure her desire for vengeance hits a nerve with you?" 

"SILENCE. I knew the consequences, and I worked to compromise with what I had," she rebutted. 

"With what you had. You mean all the help you rejected? The alliances you chose not to make? Edelgard, your naive tunnel vision is why it was so, SO easy to have you strung up in our favor." The grin on Plato's face was mocking her, as if he had successfully hidden something from her. 

"The others wouldn't understand. They were, intentionally or not, complicit to stand by as Rhea took hold beyond-" at this point, Plato was laughing at her again, this time louder and with much more vigor. 

"Oh my, Thales must've had so much fun filling your head with this nonsense!! You believe everything we'd say so easily?! How have you survived this long?!" 

"Did you invite me here to simply insult me?!" Edelgard shouted, standing up in defiance. 

"A little, but no, I'm here to thank you, and reward you for your services to the future of Agartha," Plato stated, regaining his composure. "You see, the state of affairs in Fodlan now is horribly unstable. With the downfall of the Kingdom of Faergus, and Cornelia's general apathy towards actually ruling, Sreng has decimated the entirety of the north. We have many, many more test subjects now, considering how many are willing to trade their humanity for vengeance against this empire of your making. To the east, I really must thank you for executing that thorn in our side. Claude von Riegan was a wild card, appearing after we worked so hard to have Godfrey removed. He was a crafty one too, shutting down our chances at infiltrating the Gloucester lordship. What I didn't expect was that his father, the king of Almyra no less, came in to declare war for his dead son! It reminds me greatly of what your mother did at Duscur for you. Isn't that sweet?" 

"...No. No, no no no no...How? How did this happen? I was...We were…" 

"I told you, your naive tunnel vision is what gave us the leverage we needed. It seems you share that trait with your mother. Poor Dimitri, the only woman he called his mother would so easily stab him in the back, just like her daughter!" Plato continued. Edelgard shrank into herself, the rage Dimitri held toward her suddenly filling her head with guilt. "Yes Edelgard, the Tragedy of Duscur was done in your name!" 

"I was locked away, by YOUR kind, at that time! I hold no responsibility for it!" 

"But you did hold Dimitri, your last family member's life in your hand. Alas, as you said, he was a necessary sacrifice. And we're quite grateful for it too! His strength would have wiped out our forces on Cornelia's front." Plato watched with amusement as his prisoner once again battled with herself. It was almost sad how helpless she was without someone holding her hands. A shame making her squirm was so much fun. 

"Anyway, with Sreng and Almyra keeping your insects busy, we've made headway in expanding past Fodlan's borders, and with your slaughter of Rhea, we have another tool to add to our ever improving arsenal. Please, let me show you the wonders you've allowed us to make." The Agarthan clapped his hands, the bookshelf kept behind the curtains sliding away. A group of mages in those hated masks entered, carrying weapons wrapped in cloth toward Plato, who's face seemed to light up with glee. 

"Oh Edelgard, how little you know of your role in all of this. And yet, you and you alone have made everything here possible! Please, let me show you the results of your labor." Plato passed the largest weapon to her, delicately unwrapping it from its white cloth. Her hands ran across its bony, white blade as it glowed, twitching as she gently traced its crest stone. 

"I made it so these gifts from goddess are obsolete. How and where did you find even more of them? The Church of Seiros housed-" 

"It's not a gift from the goddess, child. This one was made into an axe, in your honor. After all, you brought her down for yourself, didn't you?" All blood drained from her face as she launched the axe away from her. 

"What is the meaning of this?" 

"I'm correcting the history you've lied to yourself with for all these years. Of course Rhea wanted to tighten her grip on Fodlan. She couldn't quite get past the fact that her mother and people were slaughtered by Nemesis. On our orders, of course. For every Nabatean killed, their hearts and bones were fashioned into relics for war, as instruments to the progress they stopped." 

"Humanity decides for itself-"

"Through war and conflict. Progress can't be made without necessary sacrifice. You've done the same. When Sothis taught mankind the Nabatean ways, she was foolish to think she had the right to stop us from improving. Her death was her own hubris, as war is an inevitable part of nature. You agree, don't you?" 

"No, I don't! This isn't what I fought for, what I sacrificed for! Humanity is capable of more than bloodshed, more than fighting-" Plato laughed at her yet again. 

"Oh, the irony is delicious! You speak of those platitudes when your first choice was to kill any and all potential allies! Admit it Edelgard, you've done more for us than humanity, you brought Fodlan to its knees at our feet, and you can't even comprehend it! Truly, this will be the most amusing footnote to future scholars," he said, unwrapping the other four weapons. A spear, a bow, a rod, and a sword, all bony and twitching as the other relics. 

"Let me tell you, these were quite well hidden. Your dearly beloved professor fought so hard to defend them, I'm not even sure they even knew who we were hunting for." If Edelgard had had any tea, it would've come right back up at that moment. The lance, bearing the Crest of Cichol, and the rod, bearing the Crest of Cethleann, broke her. 

"Seteth...Flayn....I'm sorry....I'm sorry....I'm so, SO sorry...." Before she herself was even aware of it, she was sobbing, face in her hands as her captor watched on. 

"The four saints did quite a good job of hiding from us for so long, but the chaos you strewn chased them out just in time. Your name will be remembered under our new order as we expand, Edelgard. It was a joy to have you here with me!"

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, this had been sitting on my computer for a LONG time, and the pandemic had ripped my attention away from creativity for so long. This one felt like it was perfect for the real-world situation many of us are dealing with.


End file.
